PM Modi pays tribute to the former Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, on his 77th birth anniversary

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to the former Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, on his 77th birth anniversary on Friday, August 20, 2021.

PM Modi tweeted, "Tributes to our former PM Shri Rajiv Gandhi Ji on his birth anniversary."

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi paid tribute to the former Prime Minister and his father on the occasion, at Veer Bhoomi, in New Delhi today.

Rajeev Gandhi was born in 1944, and was the Prime Minister of India during 1984-89 and was killed in a terrorist attack in 1991.

His birth anniversary is marked as the Sadbhavana Diwas, aimed at promoting national integration and peace among various communities. Rajiv Gandhi became the Prime Minister of India at the age of 40, after his mother, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, was killed on October 31, 1984. Rajiv Gandhi was three years old when India got independence and his grandfather Jawaharlal Nehru became the first Prime Minister of the country.

Gandhi studied at Welham Prep in Dehradun before moving to the Doon school, Dehradun. He went to the Trinity College in Cambridge and later joined the Imperal college , London.
He married Sonia Gandhi in 1968, whom he met at Cambridge. Rajiv had a passion for music, western and hindustan classical and photography.

Politics did not interest Rajiv Gandhi initially. He was a pilot and joined the Indian Airlines in 1970. Rajiv Gandhi had taken a big role in politics after his brother Sanjay Gandhi died in a plane crash in 1980.

Rajiv contested the polls from his brother's seat in Amethi and became the President of the Indian Youth Congress in 1981. This was the commencement to his political career.